Prevent Coercive Prayer In Public Schools

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Term Paper Title	Prevent Coercive Prayer In Public Schools
# of Words	1318
# of Pages (250 words per page double spaced)	5.27

Prevent Coercive Prayer in Public Schools

Prevent Coercive Prayer in Public Schools

     The First Amendment to the Constitution of the United States of America
reads: "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or
prohibiting the free exercise thereof."  This amendment, commonly called the
Establishment Clause, forms the foundation of the right of every American to
practice their chosen religion freely and without the interference of the
government.  In 1947, the Supreme Court issued a statement emphasizing the
separation of school and state based on this amendment.  Students are entitled
to the right to express their religious beliefs in school, but it is
unconstitutional for the administration to endorse or discriminate against any
religion.  Due to this interpretation, the practice of coercive prayer is
unconstitutional, and should be kept forever separated from this nation's
schools.
     The purpose of public schools is to educate, not indoctrinate.
Schoolchildren are a captive audience.  How could a second-, fourth-, or even
sixth-grader view the routine recital of prayers during the school day as a
voluntary action?  This invasive practice would create unnecessary divisions
among children by making them unduly aware of their religious differences.
Public schools are for everyone, whether they are Buddhist, Catholic, Muslim, or
Taoist.  The practice of organized prayer in schools invades the student's right
to an education free of the discrimination which organized prayer would
encourage.
     Many people mistake the religious indifference of public schools for
hostility.  Public schools must to be very careful to neither discriminate for
nor against any single religion, and people often incorrectly perceive the
schools' attitudes toward religion.  The non-discrimination requirement may seem
wrong to many, but when religion has a home in public schools, it singles out
the students who disagree with the theology being taught.  Prior to the Supreme
Court's decisions against school prayer, it was standard practice to put the
students who didn't agree with the theology being taught in places of detention
during Bible readings and prayers.
     One argument in favor of the practice of school-organized prayer draws
its basis from the belief that students must be taught morals in school, and
that morals cannot be taught in the proper manner without the use of religion.
Proponents of this viewpoint believe that an ethical code cannot exist w...

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